Manhattan’s in May … HOLY CRAP!

Simple and complete — no need to say more. So what pray tell you may ask was the cause of my reaction above? The drink recipe I offer below and one that I hope you have an opportunity to try.

After our all-together great time spent with the Little Italy and knowing that our journey was going to require some road work we opted to hit the home base and give a rather antique version of our recipe a try. In doing research for our list of Manhattan’s in May candidates, theSpeakista did a little exploring around Paul’s site (as usual) and came across his post on the Jerry Thomas Manhattan. As I have been in possession of a bottle of George T. Stagg and save making Staggeracs or de-proofing it for sipping, I have longed for a drink that would show case it adequately. The Jerry Thomas Manhattan looked ideal for my purposes and judging by Paul’s, Chuck’s and Erik’s comments on the recipe, I knew that I was in for something special.

Assembly: Stir this glorious mix of ingredients together in a mixing glass with plenty of cracked and non-cracked ice for a minute or two. Strain, garnish and serve up.

The verdict: Extremely aromatic on the nose, the drink has wonderful floral and herbal notes against a nice “spice” hint from the bitters. On the palate … oh my heavens, where have you been all my life? Not at all what I expected with a 140+ proof spirit; I expected it to be too strong to drink with the “heat” of the spirit taking over. Instead this drink is extremely smooth in texture and possesses a lush, almost blanket like quality as it coats your mouth through ever sip. Slightly sweet at first, the drink opens up to reveal this amazing bourbon in all of its glory. On the mid and after palate is the floral and botanical notes from different players and a lingering, long bitterness caps the experience off perfectly. Heaven in a glass!!

Oh my goodness … I think I need to change my religious beliefs. Actually, I just need another one of these to sip on. We have many more stops left on our Manhattan’s in May journey but frankly after stopping off at home and having one (several) of these, I am not all-together sure I want to get back in the car. Let’s see if my driver can coax me out of my slumber tomorrow for the plan is to hit the turnpike … and what a thrill that always is.

I’m an Old School kinda guy and pref the standard version with some twists — interesting because I’ve done some experimentation and found that slight tweaks to the ratios depending upon spirit and vermouth can make a difference. The Jerry Thomas Manhattan is just fabulous. There really is something about the intense flavor profile offered in a cask strength spirit that lends itself to such variation. If you can get your hand on such a spirit, use the heck out of it because you’ll love it.

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